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The Starting Line – End Welfare for UT-San Diego’s Owner and his Friends; Raise the Minimum Wage

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Today’s UT-San Diego editorial represents the height of hypocrisy.

Titled ‘Minimum wage hikes deliver maximum pain to the poor’, it goes on to tell us in no uncertain terms about the terrible things that will follow should Congress act on a bill introduced on Tuesday by Democratic Senators Tom Harkin of Iowa and George Miller of California that would raise the hourly minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 — and add an annual adjustment to keep pace with the cost-of-living index.

At the heart of the issue over wages is a business model that relies upon ‘corporate welfare’ either through tax breaks or subsidies (including their labor costs).  Aside from the fact that it’s remarkably short-sighted, such a business philosophy also leads to increases in wealth differential. They get richer, everybody else gets poorer. And that’s exactly what’s happening in the US today.   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Report: California Leads the Nation in Right Wing Extremist Groups

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The popular image of the Golden State is that it’s a hotbed of liberalism; it’s the “left coast” of the country in conserve-speak. The Republican Party is all but irrelevant, and even Orange County, the former bastion of conservatism is no long safe for the GOP. It would seem that, having been defeated in the electoral arena, some right wing activists are moving into the grey areas of political activity.

So it may come as a surprise to some that a report from the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) issued yesterday names California as the national leader when it comes to the number –82–of conspiracy-minded anti-government so-called “Patriot” groups. Such groups have seen substantial growth since the 2008 election of President Obama and are described as becoming increasingly militant.

In 2008 there were 149 such organizations nationally, rising to 512 in 2009, jumping again to 824 in 2010, to 1,274 in 2011 and increasing yet again in 2012 to 1360. The report warns:

Now, in the wake of the mass murder of 26 children and adults at a Connecticut school and the Obama-led gun control efforts that followed, it seems likely that that growth will pick up speed once again.

Inside: Has the NRA Gone Too Far for Firearm Manufacturers?, Yes We Can Kill; Here Come the Drones, Letter Talks About Hoteliers’ Damage to San Diego, Food Riots Likely to Become the New Normal   [Read more…]

Chargemaster: Hospitals’ Killer App for Sucking Your Financial Blood Dry – Part 1

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We spend more on artificial knees and hips every year than Hollywood collects at the box office.

A recent exhaustive article in Time magazine details the exhorbitant charges that hospitals are imposing on the American people, charges that have nothing to do with the actual costs of services provided. A woman in Stamford, Connecticut suffering from chest pains called 911. She was taken by ambulance to the emergency room at Stamford Hospital, a non-profit institution, four miles away.

After a few hours of tests she was told that she just had a case of indigestion; her heart was fine. So she went home. Her bill: $21,000 – for a false alarm. That breaks down to $995. for the ambulance ride, $3000. for the doctors and $17,000. for the hospital. Unfortunately, she had no insurance because she had been out of work for a year.

The American medical marketplace is such that those least able to pay are charged the most money. Their prices are determined by what is called a Chargemaster, a massive computer file thousands of items long. Every hospital has one.   [Read more…]

The Sequester and the Tea Party Plot

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by Robert Reich

Imagine a plot to undermine the government of the United States, to destroy much of its capacity to do the public’s business, and to sow distrust among the population.

Imagine further that the plotters infiltrate Congress and state governments, reshape their districts to give them disproportionate influence in Washington, and use the media to spread big lies about the government.

Finally, imagine they not only paralyze the government but are on the verge of dismantling pieces of it.

Far-fetched? Perhaps. But take a look at what’s been happening in Washington and many state capitals since Tea Party fanatics gained effective control of the Republican Party, and you’d be forgiven if you see parallels.

Tea Party Republicans are crowing about the “sequestration” cuts beginning today (Friday). “This will be the first significant tea party victory in that we got what we set out to do in changing Washington,” says Rep. Tim Huelskamp (Kan.), a Tea Partier who was first elected in 2010.   [Read more…]

Tourism Marketing District Could Be Made Subject to Living Wage Ordinance

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Obstinance of San Diego City Council and big hotel interests stymieing TMD deal, tourism ad campaigns.

The Bob Filner era in San Diego is only in its infancy stages, but it has certainly not disappointed in the fireworks department. The sometimes brash yet affable new mayor has left no doubt that there’s a new sheriff in town, and the old wink-wink nudge-nudge ways of doing business Downtown have come to an end. Filner made his disdain for the “downtown special interests” a major focal point in his campaign, and thus far he’s held true to his word.

The most recent big controversy at City Hall—until yesterday, that is—was Filner’s refusal sign, and thus finalize, a contract drafted during the Sanders administration to provide the Tourism Marketing District $30 million per year for the next 39 years, ostensibly for the purpose of promoting San Diego as a major tourism destination in various media markets around the country. The agreement calls for levying an additional assessment on hotel guests on top of the transient occupancy tax that even San Diego City Attorney Jan Goldsmith calls legally dubious (he says it’s in a “legal gray area”).   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Mayor Filner Keeps Up the Heat on Hoteliers

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Get ready for more UT-San Diego editorials calling Mayor Filner a bully.

He’s calling into question the deal struck between former Mayor Jerry Sanders and the downtown crowd giving them control over the Convention Center’s sales and marketing. Yesterday Filner’s office released a letter calling for an end to that agreement, demanding return of those functions to a City sponsored non-profit.

This agreement was the quid pro quo demanded by hoteliers in 2012 in return for their cooperation with an increase in taxes to pay for the Convention Center expansion.

INSIDE: SABOTAGING THE NEW SUPERINTENDENT? – VOUCHERCARE IS NEXT ON GOP AGENDA   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – White on White: the California GOP Convention

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As California goes, so will go the rest of the country. State Republicans, fearful of obvious signs the party is declining into irrelevancy, circled the wagons over the weekend in Sacramento for their 2013 convention.

The theme of “fighting back” was continuously raised throughout the weekend.

The confab was larger this year than in the recent past, with controversial (among Republicans) guest speaker Karl Rove serving as a drawing card at a Saturday luncheon. The consultant to former President George Bush told delegates to “Get off your ass” and “Get back in the game and fight.”

Although incoming chair Jim Brulte pulled off somewhat of a coup by getting the GOP strategist to skip his normal six figure speaking fee, the decision was not without controversy.   [Read more…]

Why Can’t Mayor Filner Just Be Nicer? Corporate News as Propaganda, San Diego Style

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As the historic battle between Mayor Filner and San Diego’s big hoteliers over the tourism marketing deal unfolds, it’s clear where the lines are drawn.

On one side, you have a new strong mayor who is committed to ending business as usual in San Diego and on the other, you have folks like Terry Brown, chairman of the San Diego Tourism Marketing Association who, as Matt Potter at The San Diego Reader has pointed out, is a big time Republican funder as are the crew of business lobbyists, real estate developers, and San Diego Taxpayer Association types who have miraculously found they can love a tax after it has transubstantiated into a fee and serves as a giveaway to corporate interests.   [Read more…]

The Value of Human Smuggling

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By Beryl Forman

This semester I was unable to register for any classes offered through SDSU’s department of City Planning, where I am working towards my masters degree.  As to not get sidetracked from my academic pursuit, I opened my options up to what is being taught throughout the entire University.

A friend of mine offered a few recommendations, and the one that stood out was called Culture and Society of Tijuana, an entire class devoted to Tijuana!

As an Urban Planning student living in San Diego, Tijuana has captured my attention from the day I moved here over eight years ago.

I’ve had the opportunity to write a couple of research papers and interview important people about the history of planning between our border cities and Tijuana’s public spaces.  To further my area of interest, it only seemed appropriate that I register for this class, even if it was an undergraduate course that didn’t count towards my major.   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Sequestration, Implementation, Discrimination, Frustration… Compared to What?

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Happy sequestration day. 

The sky most likely won’t fall at 11:59pm tonight when President Obama signs the order implementing terms of a deal struck with Congress designed to be so odious that no person in their right mind would allow it to happen.

That should tell us a lot about the current mental state of the nation’s politicians. But it doesn’t.  The horrible deal, as it turns out, isn’t all that horrible, at least in the short run.

Guess who won’t be feeling the effects of sequestration?  From Bloomberg News:

The cuts, known as sequestration, will have no impact on the president, U.S. lawmakers and other top government officials. It is especially ironic that Congress, which has the power to avert the reductions, has nothing to lose in the negotiations, said Dan Gordon, former head of federal procurement in the Obama administration.

INSIDE: LES MCCANN, PROP H8, DISTRICT FOUR WALK-OFF, NORTH PARK GETS A PARKLET   [Read more…]

Live in North Park, City Heights, University Heights, Normal Heights, Rolando or other nearby areas? Like to ride a bike? Like to ride a bike without fearing for your life?

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If some or all of the above apply to you mark your calendars for Wednesday, March 6, from 6 to 8:30 PM.  SANDAG is holding the second open-to-the-public meeting soliciting community input for the North Park – Mid-City Bike Corridors Project.  The meeting will be held at the Sunset Temple in North Park at 3911 Kansas Street, San Diego, CA  92104.  If you’re looking for a spot to park your bike one of the city’s 4 bike corrals is conveniently located two short blocks away at the corner of North Park Way and 30th Street.  Bonus: the corral is right outside The Linkery restaurant which features Belgian-style drafts for $4 on Wednesday nights.

Think this is just another meeting to attend, voice your opinion, and have no real-world result for the investment of your time and efforts?  Well, you might be right.  But SANDAG has ponied up approximately $1 million for the planning and preliminary design stages of this project.   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Brilliant! New San Diego Schools Superintendent Selected from Community

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The grapevine was humming yesterday as word seeped out that San Diego Unified would make an early evening ‘major announcement’ following news of current Superintendent Bill Kowba’s resignation on Tuesday. Many folks, including KPBS news, thought the Board of Trustees would simply be announcing their selection process. Or naming the high priced consulting firm to sort through resumes and vet the next candidate for the job.

The announcement that Principal Cindy Marten had already been unanimously nominated by the school board as the next leader for SD Unified was indeed a shocker. A figurative “gasp” went up from many members the news media, who’ve spent the last few years crafting a narrative about the dysfunctionality of the elected Board of Trustees.

This is simply a brilliant decision. I speak from personal knowledge, having worked with Ms. Marten on education issues through my association with the parent-centric Educate for the Future. Her personal mantra (and the slogan for her school): “Work Hard. Be Kind. Dream Big. No Excuses.”

INSIDE: Filner’s Wish List, Man Bites Dog, the Sequester Conspiracy Parts 1 & 2   [Read more…]

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